Yellow
by 1Blue25
Summary: A spring break trip for one culminates in a birthday present that Bella will never forget. AU-Human. One-Shot. "For My Happy Birthday” Contest Entry


"**For My Happy Birthday"**

**A "Dreams Do Come True" Contest**

**Title: Yellow**

**Rating: M**

**Pairing: Edward/Bella**

**Vampire or Human: Human**

**For more information please see contest details on magan bagan's profile.**

**A/N: Thanks to Blackdogs for being a super beta! I do not own Twilight – it all belongs to Stephenie Meyer. **

"Mommy, what's this?" My daughter Amelia asked, holding up a photo album I hadn't seen in a long time. The album was large and I could see her small arms straining underneath the weight of the several hundred pictures it held. On the cover was a faded drawing of a generic vase and yellow flowers, but when I'd purchased it ten years ago the flowers had been bright and reminded me of the spring break trip that had changed my life.

"That, my dear, is called a photo album. Back before digital cameras, we had to use rolls of film that were then dropped off at the store to be developed. Sometimes it took days or weeks before we could see what the pictures we'd taken looked like." I was teasing my 8-year-old. She was just getting to the age where she could appreciate my brand of humor and it was nice to be able to joke around with her.

"Mom, I know that!" She replied earnestly. "You showed me the books with all my baby pictures in it before." I ruffled her red hair as she crossed the room and collapsed on the sofa. I still thought of her as my baby and it was odd to hear her talk about her infancy like it was eons ago. "What pictures are these?"

She settled onto the sofa, her legs still much too short to reach the floor. She was finishing up her second grade year and had recently lost two of her baby teeth. My heart clenched as I thought about all the growing she'd done so far, yet how far she still had to go.

I crossed the room and joined her on the sofa. Cole was down for his nap and I needed the break from the laundry. Sometimes it seemed like there was always something to do, but I never minded it too much. Except for the never-ending laundry pile. I would give up chocolate for a year if I could get someone else to do the laundry for me.

Amelia's chatter brought me out of my laundry-free fantasy. She was flipping through the wide plastic pages, her arms just long enough to turn them easily. "Is that Daddy?" she asked suddenly, pointing to a picture that I knew well.

I chuckled at her astonishment. The frozen Edward smiling at us barely resembled the man I was married to now. On the outside anyway. Inside, he was still the same man who had convinced me to marry him on my 22nd birthday ten years prior…after we'd known one another for four days. We were living proof that love at first sight did exist and could last. My heart still pounded at just the very thought of him.

"That is your dad. He used to have long hair and he wore a cowboy shirt every day." In the picture, his dark reddish hair hung loose from its usual ponytail about his shoulders. He was wearing his favorite cowboy shirt, the blue one with the silver buttons, and you couldn't see them, but his boots that day were caked in about three inches of mud. "I took that picture the day we met. My car got stuck in some mud, and he came along in his pickup truck and pushed me out." I didn't tell her the part about how it was freakishly hot that day and he'd taken off his shirt, exposing a set of abs that rivaled Brad Pitt's in "Thelma and Louise." I think I'd fallen in love with him right there.

"Daddy looks silly," she commented as she continued to flip through the pages. My trip through Tennessee that year was meant to be a solitary one. It was my last college spring break before embarking into the "real world." My roommates Rose and Alice had wanted me to go to Cancun with them – again – but I had craved something different that year. Apparently something different was a trip through the state that I'd been born and lived in until I was five. I hadn't remembered too much about my first home, but something about Tennessee had called to me that year. Alice insisted two weeks later that it was Edward's heart calling to me. She might have been right.

Amelia continued to flip through the pages and I narrated the trip that Edward and I took. We ended up leaving my sedan parked at his dad's farm. There stood Edward's parents in one of the early pictures, reminiscent of that painting "American Gothic." Amelia giggled at the picture of her grandparents and I could only smile thinking about the looks on their faces when we returned a few days later, married.

We sat together on the sofa for over an hour as I told her the fun things Edward and I had done on our trip. His truck had been old but sturdy enough to cover the 1,500 miles that we traveled. From Chattanooga to Nashville to Clarksville to Memphis, and then back to the farmhouse near Athens.

We got to the last picture, and Amelia was understandably confused. "But what about the part where you got married? Don't you have any pictures from that?"

I smiled as I remembered my birthday that year with utter clarity. Edward had wanted to do something special to mark the occasion. And we had. But we had no pictures from that day. No memories to share with our family and friends. And we had planned it that way on purpose. That day had been just for the two of us. The party that came a few months later had been for everyone else. The day we merged our lives and souls had been private, something we wanted to keep just between the two of us. It had been perfect.

I cuddled my small daughter into my side, feeling her body relax against mine as she yawned and fought the nap she so desperately thought she was too old for anymore. "I have all the pictures I need from that day in my mind," I told her as I began to recount the day I turned 22 and married the love of my life…

* * *

I woke when the birds began chirping, greeting the sun that was just beginning to appear far on the horizon. Edward and I were snuggled together in one sleeping bag in the bed of his truck. It was still chilly in the hills of northern Tennessee, but neither one of us had wanted to sleep inside another flea-bag motel again. Edward loved being outdoors, and it was nothing to him to sleep underneath the stars. It had been my first time sleeping without the benefit of four walls and a roof, and Edward had made it memorable for more than one reason.

I stretched as much as I could inside the zipped-up bag. Edward's arms held my body tight against his. One hand palmed my naked breast while the other splayed out wide over my abdomen. We'd made love for the first time the night before and it had been intense. From the moment he'd kissed me to the moment he'd climaxed inside of me, I had been his only focus. I'd never had an experience like it before. I could tell already that I would be sore for a while, but it was a good kind of sore.

I wanted to get dressed and out of the farmer's field that we'd camped in for the night before the sun rose completely. Edward's breath blew gently across my ear; I knew he was still asleep and I hated to wake him. Especially when he had his body wrapped so protectively around my own. I'd never felt so cherished before. The boys I'd gone to school with in Virginia were vastly different from the man I'd made love to the night before. None of my exes held a candle to him, and as my spring break drew to a close, I could only hope that we would find a way to work things out. We hadn't talked about it, but I knew that _this_ was something more. I wouldn't be able to say goodbye in two days' time and neither would he.

I wiggled around in the bag and was able to turn around so that I was facing Edward. His hair was loose and I played with the ends of it. I'd never dated anyone with long hair before. I'd been surprised by how much of a turn-on it was. Especially when it brushed against my thighs as he lavished copious amounts of affection on my sex. It was almost like having two lovers instead of one. Not that I would ever need anything more than Edward.

His lips were parted slightly and I ran my finger over them, feeling his breath as it escaped his mouth. His long eyelashes fanned over his cheeks and if I looked closely enough, I could detect a few freckles peppered across the bridge of his nose. That was the only part of him that was boyish. The rest of his body screamed 100% adult male.

"Edward," I called gently. I wished we could sleep longer, and we could have had we wanted to spend the $35 on the room at the Motel 8 off the highway. I had the money, but had wanted to be alone with Edward. I'd known all day yesterday that we would be lovers by the end of the day, and hadn't wanted to share that with the other guests. Instead we'd shared it with the frogs and the cows and the stars.

I called his name again and green eyes finally blinked open. "Hey, we'd better get moving," I told him as I pressed my body against his in direct opposition to what I was saying.

"Mmm," he replied, sliding his hands down to my butt and pulling my groin tight against his. His eyes slid shut again and I giggled against his chest. I loved being with him like this. I'd only known him for a few days, but it felt like I'd actually known him my entire life. We just clicked. Our likes, dislikes, dreams, fears, everything fit like we belonged together. My throat got thick just thinking about how perfect he was for me. He was so many things that I never knew I needed; strong when I talked about being scared of leaving school, understanding when I complained about my parents, calm when I freaked out because we'd gotten lost in the city. Alternately, I seemed to be what he needed as well; silly when he got too serious, supportive when he voiced his secret dreams for the future aloud for the first time, loving when he finally let his guard down a little.

"Edward, we need to get to Graceland before all the Elvis decorative plates sell out." I pulled out of his embrace and started fishing around for my shirt and pants. It had been easy to get undressed inside our love nest the night before but I had a feeling that it would much more difficult putting our clothes back on. I yanked my t-shirt out triumphantly and slid it over my head.

"Ow!" Edward called out, sitting up and rubbing his nose.

"Finally. I thought you were going to sleep the day away." I was wide awake now and anxious to get a move on. It would probably take us half the day to drive to Memphis and I wanted to get going. I pulled my leggings out from underneath his body and shimmied into them as best I could. I would forego underwear until we got someplace with a restroom where I could freshen up.

I climbed out of the sleeping bag and stood on the bed of the truck, breathing the cool morning air deeply into my lungs. I'd gained a new appreciation for fresh air over the past week.

"Bella," Edward called. "I think you broke my nose."

I quickly turned back and knelt on top of the sleeping bag to examine Edward's gorgeous face. He was sitting up now, the orange sleeping bag pooled around his hips, exposing his bare chest. I tried very hard to stay focused on his nose, but it was difficult.

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry. Does it hurt?" I leaned in and kissed his nose gently. It was about as broken as I was tall, but I didn't mind lavishing a little extra attention on him.

He smiled up at me then before dragging my lips down to his mouth for a more meaningful kiss. "Happy birthday," he said when he was done. I blinked at him a few times, trying to get my bearings. My mind tended to go blank when he touched me. He reached behind his duffle bag and presented me with a small packet he'd created out of the red bandana that had been wrapped around the rear view mirror.

"What's this?" I asked, testing its weight in the palm of my hand.

"Your birthday present. Open it," he told me hesitantly. He climbed out of the sleeping bag while he spoke, stepping into his pants as soon as he'd found them. He sat back down in front of me, our knees touching while I continued to stare at the makeshift wrapping paper.

I murmured his name as I untied the knot. I hadn't expected a birthday present from him at all. We'd only just met four days ago. My heart didn't seem to know the difference as it beat loudly inside my chest. I pulled back the sides of the cloth and discovered a single yellow flower safely inside. Edward had obviously picked it out of the field surrounding the truck and it made my heart clench at the significance. It was a small reminder of our first real night together.

I reached for the flower, wanting to examine it more closely, but Edward's hand beat me to it. "Here, let me," he said, lifting the flower out of the packet. He took my left hand in his and stared deep into my eyes. "Isabella, I never knew love until I met you. The sun has burned hotter, the stars have shined brighter and I've discovered colors that I never knew existed. I can't imagine spending the rest of my life without you." His fingers grasped my hand tighter and I felt a slight tremor as he revealed what his present really was. I felt the slide of the flower over my knuckles as he slipped his ring made from love onto my left ring finger. "Will you marry me?"

Tears leaked out of my eyes as I realized that his real gift to me was himself. There was nothing else that I wanted more than him in the entire world. I looked down at our hands, his browned from the sun, mine pale from a lifetime spent indoors, and the yellow flower that was destined to bind us together for eternity. My throat grew thick again as I tried to say one word, the only word that made sense.

"Yes," I breathed out, knowing that it might have seemed crazy to the rest of the world, but marrying Edward would be the sanest thing I'd ever done. "Yes, I'll marry you."

Edward whooped and pulled us both up to stand in the back of his truck. "We're getting married!" he called out to the cows in the neighboring field. I swore one of them turned and nodded approvingly. He kissed me then, and this kiss was different from all the other kisses I'd received. This kiss burned with confidence. It burnt with possession. It burnt with need.

When he released my lips, I sagged against his naked chest. "What do we do now?" I asked. I felt giddy and nervous and happy. Happier than I'd ever been. But I had no idea what came next. "Should we call our parents? Oh – maybe I should tell Rose and Alice first. And then you can call your brother."

"There's no time for that," Edward told me as he began cleaning up our makeshift bed. "We've got to get to Memphis."

"Wait, what? I couldn't drag you out of bed fifteen minutes ago, but now you're anxious to go?" He made no sense, which was strange. Edward was usually very clear with his words.

"The clerk's office closes at 5, and we'll need to find a minister…" he'd finished tying everything up and jumped out of the truck easily to the ground. I could only stare after him, more confused than before.

"A minister? Hold on – you want to get married _today_?" I had pictured a long engagement, which would give us time to convince our families that we weren't jumping into something we would both regret later on. By that point, we would have figured out where we wanted to live and hopefully I'd have a job lined up.

Edward helped me out of the truck and ushered me into the cab of the truck. We were on the dirt road that had led us to our field within minutes. "Today. Yes, today," he finally replied. "Why should we wait? We know it's what we both want, and you've already told me that you don't want a big wedding." He had me there. I hated the idea of all the pomp and circumstance. I just wanted something simple. The sound of just the two of us and a minister was incredibly appealing.

"What am I going to tell my parents? They'll kill me if I come back home _married_." I had always been the good kid. They'd never had any trouble with me growing up. I didn't want to see the disappointment in their faces when I went back home to introduce them to my husband.

Edward reached across the cab and grabbed my hand. As usual, I calmed within minutes. He was careful not to crush the yellow flower ring I wore, which was incredibly sweet. "Love, we'll tell them the truth. We're in love and didn't want to wait. You've got, what, six weeks left before you graduate? My next job isn't for another few weeks either. I'll come back to Virginia with you until then, and we'll work something out until our other commitments are fulfilled."

Edward worked in construction, and I knew that with the weather getting warmer, work would start picking up again soon. He helped his dad around the farm during the winter, but spent the rest of the year working various jobs around the state. What he really wanted to do was open his own business with his brother, Emmett. Emmett had just gotten his contractor's license, and as soon as they could get the start-up money, they'd be ready to go.

"Edward, I don't want them to be mad at me," I said, still stuck on the thought of breaking the news to my parents. They'd married young too, but right out of high school. Mom had been telling me for years to not settle down before I was ready. Would she believe me when I told her that I knew that I was ready now?

Edward continued to grip my hand as we bumped along the road. He knew all my fears about my parents. I didn't think there was a topic we hadn't discussed over the past four days. "They'll get over it, Bella, once they see how happy we are." Edward's face radiated joy and I found it hard not to allow myself to feel the same way.

"We're getting married," I said aloud, reverently.

"You're going to be my wife," he said, his smile growing impossibly larger.

"You're going to be my husband," I replied in kind.

We found a waffle house half an hour later. I dug out a fresh change of clothes, deodorant, and some toothpaste. I hoped we'd be able to find a hotel in Memphis before we got married. I wanted to at least have clean hair on my wedding day.

I devoured an entire plate of waffles and bacon. Edward sucked back at least three cups of coffee and I couldn't help but smile at his addiction. Something we didn't have in common: I hated coffee, but it was his drink of choice. It was funny that even the small differences made me happy. Everything about Edward made me happy.

The rest of the trip to Memphis was long. It probably seemed longer because we had something memorable to look forward to. Edward pulled off the highway about halfway there, just for me. He knew that I liked to take pictures of all the interesting places we passed. We'd already visited the Flying Saucer House, Rock City, and the Parthenon. Graceland was up next and if there was time, I wanted to see the Peabody Ducks.

We decided not to make too many stops on our way to Memphis, but the sign advertising a replica of the Eiffel Tower was impossible to resist. We climbed out of the truck, but I left my camera behind. It had been my constant companion for the entire trip, from the time I'd left school even; I'd been taking pictures to document my adventure. But, this day was different. This was my birthday and it was also my wedding day. A wedding that we were keeping private so it could be a memory that only the two of us could share. It seemed wrong to document any part of the day any further. I wanted the whole day to be just between me and Edward. From the moment I'd woken up in his arms to that night when I fell asleep in them again, I wanted our day to be private.

We didn't stay long. We were both too anxious to get to our destination, and truth be told, I was starting to feel nervous too. I would only get married once and the enormity of our decision began to weigh on me. Edward, of course, sensed my mood immediately. We stopped for gas, and when he hopped back into the cab, we handed me a brown paper bag.

"What's this?" I felt the bag, trying to guess what lay hidden inside.

"Open it." Edward started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot, back towards the road to the highway. It was after lunch time, but we only had an hour or two before we got to Memphis. Our fast food lunch bag had been thrown away at the gas station, but the cheeseburger I'd consumed was not sitting well on my nervous stomach.

I opened the bag and pulled out a small book. "Mad Libs? I haven't done these since I was a kid. Mom and I used to spend hours doing these together in the car on road trips." How Edward had known the perfect way to get me to relax, I never knew. But we spent the rest of the trip turning random nouns, adverbs and colors into funny stories.

As we neared the city proper of Memphis, I dug out the map Edward and I had pored over earlier. He'd marked the county clerk's office, the hotel we'd picked to spend our wedding night, Graceland, and a wedding chapel that he somehow knew off the top of his head. It seemed too convenient at the time; it wasn't until our first anniversary that he confessed that he'd known from the day we met that he wanted to marry me in Memphis. He'd looked up chapels before we'd even left his parents' house.

Our first stop was the county clerk's office. We kept our arms around each other the whole time we stood in line. My nerves had disappeared, but I was back to being anxious. Not only did we have a wedding to look forward to, but we had the wedding night as well. I replayed the night before in my head while we waited. Edward didn't seem to mind that I rested my head on his chest and hummed at important moments during my replay. I was very much looking forward to a reenactment that night.

The clerk was quick and efficient. We produced our driver's licenses, answered some inane questions, signed a few documents, and presto: instant marriage license. I examined it intently as Edward drove us to the hotel. It was the first time I'd seen our names linked.

"Isabella Marie Swan and Edward Anthony Cullen. Our names look beautiful together," I told him proudly.

"I'll look once we get to our hotel. This traffic is a nightmare." Edward was concentrating hard on not getting us killed before we could say our vows. We'd hit the beginning of Friday rush hour traffic and Edward seemed agitated, which was unusual for him. I was the one who got worked up over driving in lots of traffic.

"We still have plenty of time though, right? I can't wait to take a shower. I feel so grubby." Dirt was trapped underneath my fingernails and my scalp was beginning to itch. I wanted to soak in a hot tub for days. I was not used to spending so much time outside, but I'd grown to appreciate it thanks to Edward.

Edward cleared his throat and I knew he was about to say something that I wouldn't like. "Actually, the chapel closes at six. We might not have time to go to the hotel beforehand."

I glanced frantically at the clock in the dashboard. "Five-thirty? How can it be so late?" I tried to remember the last time I'd even noted the time, but that had been before lunch. The day had escaped us and we weren't even married yet. "Edward, we have to get married today! We can't wait until tomorrow. We already have to start driving back to Athens early tomorrow in order for me to get back to school on time." Edward grabbed my hand, no doubt trying to calm me, but I was frantic. I'd been hesitant at first, but now I was determined to marry Edward, and it had to be that very day.

"I know, I'm sorry. We hit more traffic than I thought. Here's the situation. The chapel is ten minutes from here. The hotel is probably thirty minutes away. We just don't have time to go to the hotel first. Bella, we need to decide now. Do you want to marry me today? Because if you do, we're going to have to do it as is. Otherwise, we can wait," Edward gulped, and I knew this was clearly not the option he would choose," and we'll have a bigger wedding later on that everyone else can attend."

My heart beat slowly as I studied Edward's face. This entire week had not been expected. Edward had not been expected. But I knew deep down in my soul that it was right, marrying Edward was right. I didn't want to wait and neither did he. This might not be the wedding I'd always pictured, but I had a feeling it would be better than anything I ever could have imagined. Because I was marrying Edward and none of the little things mattered. My dirty fingernails, itchy scalp, or smelly feet. Edward's scruffy face, tattered cowboy shirt and muddied jeans. All that mattered was us, together, pledging our lives to one another.

"I want to marry you today," I told him, my voice clear and strong.

Edward's smile replaced the harried look that had taken over once we'd hit the traffic jam. He would have gone with whatever decision I'd made, but I knew I'd picked the one that made him the happiest. "Let's go get hitched, love."

He took the next exit and it was a relief to peel away from the frantic pace of the interstate. This was what I wanted: slow and easy, peaceful, quiet, Edward. The streets we drove along were residential. I had no idea where he was taking us, but I trusted him. As if he'd been doing it his whole life, Edward pulled into the parking lot of a small white chapel. Pink and white dogwoods surrounded the building and beds of yellow daffodils lined the walkway to the front door.

We entered the chapel together, side by side, hands clasped. A small woman greeted us and recognized the expression on our faces. Edward took care of picking out the package we wanted while I hurried to the ladies room to make myself as presentable as possible. The girl who stared back at me in the mirror was different from the girl who had started her road trip the week before. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright and she looked serene. She was beautiful. I'd never thought of myself as beautiful until Edward told me so. And it wasn't until the moment that I walked down the aisle, hands clasped around a small bouquet of daffodils, towards the man who was my future that I knew it to be true.

* * *

"Love, Bella love, wake up," I jerked awake at the sound of my husband's voice. Green eyes met mine and I smiled at the most handsome face I'd ever seen. His hair was short now and lines were beginning to form at the corner of his eyes, but he still seemed as perfect to me as he had on our wedding day. "You were talking in your sleep again." He swore that he had the best conversations with me while I was asleep, yet I never remembered any of it the next morning.

"Did I reveal any state secrets?" I asked, while I tucked a blanket around Amelia. She was still asleep and I was anxious to have a few moments alone with my husband.

Edward tugged me into the kitchen so we could talk. He leaned against the counter and pulled me against the still-hard planes of his body. Even ten years later, Edward still had a good body. He blamed it on the construction work he still liked to do, even though it wasn't necessary now that he was the boss. My body had gone soft from carrying two children, but Edward showed me several times a week just how much he liked my curves.

"You were mumbling about flowers for a while. Then you started repeating our wedding vows." His eyes twinkled and I knew that he was reminiscing about that day too.

"Amelia found our wedding album," I said with a laugh. I placed my head against his chest and listened to the strong thump of his heart.

Edward chuckled at the private joke and it made my head bounce. "I don't think our parents will ever forgive us for that. It was bad enough that we eloped, but then we came home without any pictures of the event."

"It was our day. Besides, they got over it." As predicted, neither of the Swan or Cullen parents were particularly pleased with what we had done. Once it became obvious that we would not be divorcing at any moment, they finally made the effort to accept our marriage. That had been fine with us; it just gave us several months for us to be alone before the normal demands of parents who wanted frequent visits began.

"I love you, Bella. You have no idea how happy you made me that day." He kissed my head and I snuggled against his chest, wishing that we could sneak away to our room but knowing that one or other of the children would wake up soon.

"I love you too. You were the greatest birthday present I've ever received."

**A/N: Thanks for reading! Please review and let me know what you think!! I guess I should also tell you to vote for my story. Voting will start Wednesday April 22nd and end Midnight EST Thursday April 23rd. Visit Magan Bagan's profile for more details - you can find the link on my profile page under "favorite authors." **


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